Monthly Archives: February 2011

I stumbled across a wonderful Alt.Latino post on Jessy Bulbo, musician, cultural instigator, and all around riot grrrl. Her work is subversive, edgy, while paying homage to her Mexican roots. I love artists who can cherish the old, but not fall into the nostalgia trap to make new and refreshing commentary through music and performance.

I then realized that I don’t have much of a background on Latina artists. I can name J-Lo, Charo, and Gloria Estefan, but that’s about it. I know that there is a wealth of amazing Latina talent out there. So to my readers, who are you jamming to? Let me know!

“Not only does society suffer from racism and sexism but it also suffers from ageism. Once you reach a certain age you’re not allowed to be adventurous, you’re not allowed to be sexual. I mean, is there a rule? Are you supposed to just die?”

The Sound Opinions radio show is quite awesome. They have covered various artists that I love including Chrissie Hynde, The Vivian Girls, and Janelle Monae. Now, the show is called “Sound Opinions” so, it’s a show featuring the things the hosts Jim & Gregg like. But I was a little disappointed in their recent show on the music of 1991, or at least the music that signified 1991 for them. That list didn’t include any women. 😦

Now, it wasn’t until a a few years later when we had mainstream media exposure for a lot of female artists we think of as staples now-a-days (Sarah McLachlan, Gwen Stefani, Beyonce, ect) but however, there were plenty of women doing grunge type stuff just as prolifically and passionately as Nirvana.

So for future reference, here are some albums that symbolize 1991 for me by the ladies who have just as much to say as Radiohead or NWA.

Also, NRP’s All Songs Considered Blog just posted a note asking if the 90s were awesome and asking what music readers hold dear from that decade. Were the 90s awesome? Of course they were! Thankfully some readers made sure to comment on the amazing female artists of the time. Unfortunately, most did not mention the ladies and bands with the some ladies who rocked the decade. Sure, it maybe that none of the readers jammed out to Shawn Colvin, but we shouldn’t forgot these talented artists!

This is one of the problems with retrospectives and “best of” lists that get complied 10, 20 years after something happens. A few names get remembered (mostly male, see any Rolling Stone greatest list) and everything else disappears. That is why we loose so many amazing female artists because they do not get included in these types of lists or retrospectives ,therefore, later generations have no idea what was “cool” during a specific time period. (Sure some male bands and artists are lost too, no argument there, but when it comes to remembering musicians, male artists dominate those lists.)

As a culture we don’t think these women are important enough to remember, or the list makers happen to be male, and often only include other men in their lists (they might not even realize, and it may not be intentional, it but that doesn’t make it any less ok though.)

Yet another task for Jukebox Heroines, to make sure women who rock are never forgotten!

In case you don’t know, here are some women who turned it up in the 90s. By no means definitive, but this is just off the top of my head. Who am I missing? Let me know in the comments section! 🙂

Electro-Pop band Xylos, is releasing their debut album April 5, 2011. Preview the track “Not Enough” here.

Emma Hill – Folk Roots and Americana. Emma has a new album called “Meet me at the Moon”, out now. Homey vocals with heart.

Montreal dirty-pop band, The Lindbergh Line. Remember all the sneers and strutting of Pat Benatar, Tina Turner, and Cherie Currie? Remember when rock was cool? Well, that’s the kind of rock ethos you’ll get with The Lindbergh Line. Check out their EP “Bang Bang You’ll Be Missed.”

Clara Engel is a prolific Toronto singer-songwriter with a focus on Avant Garde and Experimental. In the studio since she was 21, she has released 7 albums to date. Download her latest live album as well as her others here.